Took my girlfriend windsurfing for the first time today and we had a blast. We both used my 2000 Starboard Go 190L and a 6.5m2 rig. Even tough it was way too much wind for her with that kind of equipment I think she really liked it.

Now she wants her own board and so I turn to you for advice.
She is 163 cm tall and 58kg. What sort of board, size of board and size of sail would you recommend her?

I&#39;m really excited about her wanting to start windsurfing!

At the same time I&#39;m considering getting some new equipment myself. I&#39;m 193 cm tall and about 90 kg. I have not sailed a whole lot and I&#39;m working on my planing skills right now. What kind of board and what size would you recommend me? I wan&#39;t something that I can progress on and enjoy for a while.

I find this forum a great resource for information for windsurfers; so thank you guys for helping clueless guys like myself

Hi Andrews,
Having your girlfriend try wind surfing, and like it, is indeed exciting.
Perhaps get her a smaller and lighter rig (something you can use when the wind is too strong for your 6.5m2 rig) and she can progress nicely on your GO 190 ltr.
The nest step for you would problably be a Carve.
At 90 Kg, it would seem the Carve 122 or 111 would compliment your GO 190 pretty well.
Also, you may need a larger rig to extend your range with the Carve and GO to a little bit less wind.
Hope this helps,

I was thinking a NP Solo 5.0 would be okay for her, and great for me in stronger winds. Reading up on the Carve it seems like a great board for me and I can still use my GO on days with less wind. For my largest sail how big would you go? 7.5 - 8.0?

Hi Andrews, the Solo looks OK.
Be sure to ge the 400 cm X6 mast (or another 400 cm IMCS 19 Std. Dia Mast that&#39;s even lighter than the 55% Carbon X6).
As far as a arger sail, you have to be careful not to get too much gap between your sails or you will have an "unbridgeable hole" where the larger size is too big and your next smaller size isn&#39;t large enough.
6.5-8.0m2 is stretching things almost too much. If you can afford it, a 5.0/6.5/7.5/8.5-9.0 quiver would be great, but you also need to factor in what the min. windspeed to plane is for your larger board.
Your 190 ltr GO can easily handle a 9.5-10.5 to get the max. early planing (with a larger fin). but the smaller Carve can only handle up to around 8.5 m2.
Hope this helps,

I&#39;m a bit short on cash and since windsurfing equipment is rather expensive here in Norway I had to look for some used equipment
I got a decent offer on a 2007 Starboard Go 129 and a NP Solo rig and I&#39;m wondering how this board compares to the Carve? I noticed in the specs that the Carve was a lot lighter.

Hi Andrews,
The GO 129 is quite a bit heavier in the "TufSkin" construction, but at 72 cm wide it should make for an easier transition vs the Carve 111/122/133 as the extra width will be good until you get up above 20 knots alot, and at 90 Kg. that may not be as much a problem.
The Solo is OK, NP gear tends to be a bit "pricey".
Have you looked for other brands, or even really good used or demo sails. I&#39;d suggest spending the most on getting lightweight mast and boom as these components can be carried forward fairly easily if you shop for sails that are compatible.
Hope this helps,

Last night I got a great offer on two boards. This kind of made me change my mind about the GO. The boards are a 2006 Carve 122 and a 2006 S-Type 115. I figured I might be worth the struggle getting used to a smaller and more "pro" board right away. I will order tone of these boards first thing on monday; but wich board should I choose?

Since I&#39;m not a great windsurfer (yet I want a bord that is not too hard to progress on, yet a board I can enjoy for years to come. Would I notice any difference in these two boards? Are they very different? Can you recommend one for me?

I&#39;m going to borrow a 111 l F2 freeride board from a friend tomorrow to see if I&#39;m up for the challenge of a smaller board

Thank you alot for your help so far, this will hopefully be my last qestion consering the purchase of a new board

Hi Andrews,
After reviewing all your posts here:
I&#39;d suggest the Carve 122 as the S-Type 115 is going to be signifcantly more difficult for you to learn the small shortboard "basics" on.
The C-122 will compliment your GO pretty well.
Yes, try the 111 liter board and let us know how you get on with it.
If you have some specific problems, come back here and we may be able to work you through them a bit more easily that you trying to solve them your self.
Hope this helps,

I have not decided on a board yet, and since the weather is getting warmer, even here in Norway, I need to get myself a new board. My girlfriend got my old GO 190 and is very happy with that board.

We went to Fuerteventura (Pro Center Rene Egli) for one week and had a great time a learned ALOT. The instructors were great and so was the weather. I got to try some different boards and after seeing me on the water my instructor recommended me a board in the range 135-160 L.

So after talking to some shops here in Norway my options are:

2007 Starboard GO 139 - I can get this really cheap. The only thing I'm unsure about is its weight compared to Carve and Futura of similar size. Will this have a inpact on the performance (considering I'm not exactly a pro? On the positive side I've heard great things about this board for progressing sailors.

2006 and 2007 Starboard Carve 162:
One shop has one 2006 and one 2007 Carve 162 left wich I can get at a decent price (not as cheap as the GO). Being just wider than the GO but 1 kg lighter how do they compare? I tried a Carve 122 but I found it too difficult to uphaul and since I'm not very good at waterstarts yet that is an issue.

2008 Futura 144/155: The Futura 155 is the widest of the board I'm considering (85 cm) and the Futura 144 at 77,5 is just narrower than the GO 139. The Futura will be the most expensive board to buy, but maybe the one that gives me most performance?

I have just one sail; a 2007 North Natural 7.0 with a North Silver 460 55% carbon mast and a North Silver Boom. I can't afford another sail just yet to for the time being this will be my only sail.

I will sail in mostly flat-water conditions (we have some very good flat-water spots here).
Early planing, ease of use and getting many days on the water is important (I dont wanna be stuck with a board that is too small), but a board that I can progress on and that will give me some performance is also important. Good up-wind performance would be great too, but I guess my techniqe is the limiting factor here, not the board

Considering my options, what board would you suggest for me? I know they probably all have pros and cons and that compromises have to be made.

hi andrews, i own the GO 139 and i love it. I bought it when i was (and in the we alway will be) a progressing sailor and learned a lot on it, very fast. I weigh just a much as you so i know for sure that it won't sink on you when u uphaul on it. The board is fast with the R13 fin you get with it, really fast if you fly it nicely overpowered and you can easily learn to sail this board up to 20something knots with a 5.5 rig. Mastering waterstarts on it is childplay and when u'r far enough down the line to get a small board you can stil keep the 139 as your lightwind board for the bigger sails (ie 7 --> 9.5~10).
I can't say anythin on the other boards though the carves have won a lot of international freeride tests and the futura is a smashing board so i've heard from other users.